Conventional dial plates for timepieces such as watches, wrist watches, bracelet watches, pendant watches, finger ring watches, and the like, generally are made from a metal plate which has a finish coat of paint or a plating material.
The dial of a timepiece is the prominent element of a timepiece which is most often viewed by the wearer and others. Accordingly, dial plates of various patterns and colors have been provided heretofore. However, the coloring of watch dial plates provides limited variations in pattern and color.
A few watch designers have proposed alternatives to colored metal dial plates. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,863,439 to Kasai et al discloses a watch dial which has metal crystal in the outer surface which metal crystals are large enough to be seen by the naked eye.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,793,824 to Simon-Vermot et al discloses a watch dial which is made from a synthetic semiprecious stone material. This patent also discusses prior art watch dials which were made from semiprecious stones and minerals or gems.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,786,627 to Takagi et al discloses a watch dial which is made from a laminate that includes a thin shell plate.
In view of the importance of the aesthetic characteristics of watch dials, any enhancement of the appearance of a watch dial can contribute to the demand of watch.